My flock was fine this morning, this afternoon they are dying!

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Mareks often takes a few weeks to kill after the initial symptoms. I still would suspect something like heat stroke due to how they were dying. Otherwise I would wonder if they ate something poisonous, but I can't think of what that might be. One other option is stings from wasps or bites from spiders, but just some ideas.

 

[Top Rooster]

Is it possible someone nearby was spraying their yard, like a pest control service? Maybe overspray could have been carried on the breeze to your yard.

Yeah that could have happened very plausible

 

[Top Rooster]

I mean possible

 

[Aber]

Ugh... I don't know... My neighbor *was* out one his tractor/mower in his yard all day. And he has told me before that he sprays his yard for ticks. He actually has chickens too, I need to go over and talk to him tomorrow and see if his flock is ok.

I'm looking into Marek's now and, I mean, it's possible, I'm new to chickens and with the spasms at death it did seem nervous. But they didn't contort at all and none of the other symptoms seem to have been there.

 

[TinyBirds]

Oh no, did they possibly get into poison or near insecticide? Lots of people use poison for ants so any neighbors you could ask?

 

[TinyBirds]

The reason i ask is insecticide is toxic to birds also, not just insects. They are particularly vulnerable to powder or granular type put on mounds where they will think it is feed and eat it. Even one granule can kill a small bird.

 

[Aber]

Most of our neighbors are far enough away I don't think it would effect our yard too much. But the one neighbor shares a fence and it's not 15 feet from the run. I wonder if he did spray today...

 

[TinyBirds]

I do not think it's an illness. Sounds like poisoning of some sort. I haven't ever heard of an illness killing that fast with no symptoms. They are past the age of common cocci death too but that is the only other thing it might be. I would bet money on the poisoning. I'm so sorry for your loss! I had a friend whose dog was poised by a neighbor but this was likely unintenrional spraying for insects without realizing the harm to birds.

 

[Aber]

I doubt they could have gotten to anything granular unless he was flinging it pretty wildly, but the wind would have carried a liquid spray right to them...

 

[Aber]

Aaahhh! I need to go move Penny to the other side of the yard